It Never Had to Be
by She's a Riot
Summary: Hermione Granger is locked in a fierce, losing battle and after the death of her friends falls prey to the killing curse. To her immense surprise she wakes up in a completely new world, a world where Hermione Granger never existed... AU HG/SB RL/OC JP/LE
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I would not need to write fan fictions ^_^**

**A/N Well here it is! This is my brain child, my love and my baby, I really hope you enjoy this story because I can already tell I'm going to have so much fun writing it! This story is much deeper and hopefully will be much better written than my other, which is on temporary HIATUS until I manage to locate my inspiration, but you know what they say… when one door closes another door opens… or is this a window? ;) either way I hope you enjoy! -A**

Prologue

Screams rang out across the school grounds as wizards and witches from both sides fell dead on the sodden ground. Hermione was currently locked in a fierce battle with a masked death eater, back to back with Ginny, her long mane of mousy, brown curls tied into a bun at the back of her head, the strands that managed to escape were sticking to her face and a fierce glint lit her eyes with a wild fire that burned with the knowledge of their fate. They would not win this war. They were sorely outnumbered and for every death eater they managed to take down two more filled the empty space.

"Ginny look out!" Hermione warned, ducking the green jet of light and just barely managing to pull her friend down in time to miss the fatal spell as well. The two had hardly enough time to pull in a much needed breath of air before returning to their former positions, back to back, completely surrounded.

They were numb. Numb to the world as they focused on each new second as it was presented to them. They had no time in the heat of battle to remember. To remember Ron's faced as he pushed Hermione to the side and took the killing curse that had been intended to her, no time to remember Harry's disappearance among the massive field of bodies covered in sweat and mud and blood, no time to remember the death of Moony and Tonks as they defended the last of the fleeing students on their way out of the castle, no time to remember the charred bodies of Fred, George, and Mr. Weasley as they fell pray to rampant fiendfire, there was no time for anything. Soon there would be no time at all. Soon they would be dead too.

As the seconds turned into minutes the two girls were increasingly able to feel every bit of the seven hours they had already been a part of this pitched battle. They could feel their muscles growing weak as their spells began to lag. A stinging curse managed to break through their defenses here, a _sectumsempra _there, before they knew it Ginny's presence could no longer be felt at Hermione's back and her friend lay motionless on the battlefield, glassy eyes staring up at the dawn. Hermione didn't even attempt to dodge the green light that found it's mark right between her eyes and soon the world was enveloped in blackness…


	2. The Life of Another

**Well here you have it, the first official chapter. The whole chapter will be a series of flashbacks, so be prepared. I was so ecstatic to find that already I have 13 readers! It made me smile, but I still haven't received any feedback so if you could pretty please send me some that would be amazing! Constructive criticism is as welcome as praise and I really hope you like this chapter! -A**

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is still not mine, darn! **

The Life of Another

_A young girl sat, long chocolate brown ringlets falling freely about her tiny shoulders as she looked out upon the ocean from a large rock located on the cliff above. Foam bubbled up around the waves and gulls flew about the air in intricate patterns, their speckled white bodies glowing in the light of dawn. Her small hands tightly gripped the rock beneath her as she stared out in amazement at the endless water, a child's serene innocence playing out on her face as she followed the graceful birds with her tiny hazel eyes. Suddenly one of the gulls dove into a thick, white, bubbling wave crest and swooped magnificently back into the air, a fish in it's beak._

"_Mummy!" the girl cried in horror, her tiny hands pointing frantically at the bird. Tears forming in her wide eyes._

"_Sarah, what's wrong?" her mum exclaimed, leaping up from her place on the cliff just a meter away. _

"_Fishy!" she cried, tears running freely down her now red and blotchy cheeks._

"_Oh Sarah,…"_

_xXx_

_The same girl, now a little older, her soft brown curls pulled back into a tight bun at the back of her head, stood with a smile on her face as she nervously readjusted her red leotard. _

"_You're going to do just fine," her instructor insured, an encouraging smile softening her elegant features. She was a handsome woman, and strict. Sarah adored her._

_Softly her instructor gave her shoulder a small squeeze and pushed her forward a bit. This was Sarah's first solo and she was extremely nervous, her tiny hands flitting over her hair and the neckline of her leotard before the soft, melodious music began from the baby grand piano on the far side of the stage. With one last deep breath she forced her hands above her head and elegantly made her way onto the stage. Her feet were gracefully twisting to the music when it happened. She finally picked up enough courage to look out into the audience and the light blinded her, making her lose her balance and begin to fall. At that moment she was so embarrassed the one thing she wanted more than anything was for no one to be able to see her fall. The lights in the theater went off…_

_xXx_

"_Sarah," a young redheaded girl whined, pouting as she pushed herself back and forth on a swing with her feet._

"_Lily," her friend mocked, rolling her eyes as she continued to twirl about in the sand of the playground at their school._

"_Please?" the ginger pleaded, pushing her bottom lip out in a pout._

"_Why? We're seven, Lils, you know how to swing," Sarah reasoned, now practicing a jump she had just learned in Jazz._

"_But I want you to push me," Lily countered, her voice slightly simpering._

"_But I don't want to push you."_

"_If you push me I'll push you! Please?" her friend begged in full pout, doe eyes staring up at Sarah as she pulled her two little hands together and shook them._

"_Oh fine, you're such a baby sometimes Lily," Sarah teased her friend light heartedly, walking over to the swing and giving her friend a solid push…_

_xXx_

"_Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Sarah, happy birthday to you," a room full of party goers chorused, smiling happily as Sarah blew out the nine candles on her birthday cake._

"_Make a wish!" Lily squealed in delight, her emerald eyes glowing in excitement._

"_I did!" Sarah shot back with a "well duh" tone to her voice as she rolled her eyes at her slightly obnoxious best friend._

"_What was it?" she asked eagerly. The family had all already moved into the sitting room and were talking amicably as the two girls talked rapidly._

"_I can't tell you that!" Sarah exclaimed, her hazel eyes lit with an inner fire, hands on her hips._

"_Why not?" Lily pleaded, pouting slightly at her best friend. She never had grown out of that pout…_

"_Because then it won't come true!" she stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You can't say what you wished for or it won't come true!"_

"_Then write it down! It never said you couldn't write it!" Lily begged, once again her friend gave into the doe eyes. She always did._

_On a small strip of paper from one of her presents she swiftly wrote out her wish._

I wished that things would stay just like this and we would be best friends forever, and that 50 years from now we would still be just like this. You and me, surrounded by family.

_Lily smiled at her. "Me too, Sarah, me too." They hugged each other tightly…_

_xXx_

"_Hey! Give that back!" Sarah called out in annoyance, chasing her friend around the room as Lily ran with a crumpled note in hand. "That's mine! It's private!"_

"_Dear Sarah, I don't know how to say this so I'm just going to write it down-"_

"_LILY!" Sarah screamed, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment as she snatched the note out of her grip._

"_What? Come on Sarah, I'm your best friend! Best friends share this kind of stuff! Who's it from?" the annoying ginger implored, eyes alight with mischief._

"_I swear, Lily you're horrible! I-"_

_**Crash.**_

"_What was that?" Sarah asked, frightened eyes turning to her best friend for answers. They had finally been trusted enough by Sarah's parents to be left alone while they went out on errands but now neither of them were so sure they wanted to be alone. Before she had a chance to reply a large brown owl flapped clumsily into the room and dropped two letters onto the floor at the girls feet before flying away._

"_Together?" Sarah asked with great trepidation as she picked up one of the letters._

"_Together," Lily agreed, and their eyes snapped to the parchment._

**Sarah Jean Good**

**Second Room to the Right, **

**1004 Willowtrail, Newcastle, England **

We are pleased to inform you, you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry….

_xXx_

"_Hey Sev!" Sarah called out excitedly, dragging Lily with her over to the strange boy they had grown up with. Lily beamed at him._

"_Severus!" she exclaimed, pulling him into a hug. The two girls grinned excitedly at the young boy and he couldn't help returning the expression._

"_Hello Lily, Sarah," he said with a bob of his head to each in turn. _

"_I can't believe we're here, can you?" Lily stated excitedly, spinning in a quick circle to take it all in once more. The train station was fascinating. _

"_Well I _did _know I would be going here for as long as I could remember," he tried to say in a bored tone but they caught the lie in his eyes. He was just as excited to be there as they were. _

_They were now on the train and seated in a compartment as they chatted amicably amongst themselves. The trolley had come and gone and Sarah had bought a bit of everything for all of them to share. It was then the compartment door opened and in sauntered a group of four boys, the two in the front rather arrogantly holding themselves in a remarkably pompous manner. Sarah wanted to laugh, but thought better of it…_

_xXx_

_The great hall was magnificent. Students lined the tables and candles floated mid air. Both Lily and Sarah had expected as much, having spent the better part of the summer reading up on any and everything they could lay their hands on that would tell them about the new world they were entering and, more importantly, Hogwarts. Nervously they watched in awe as the first of the students was called up to be sorted. Though _Hogwarts, A History _had prepared them somewhat for what was to come they felt no less trepidation for it._

"_Adams, Craig," McGonagall called out, placing an old worn out hat on his head as he sat on the stool. To their great surprise after a moment of stillness the brim twitched before loudly calling out "Hufflepuff" _

_The next few went by much too quickly and soon "Evans, Lily" rang out through the hall. It seemed as if the young witch had a full conversation with the hat before finally it decided her fate. "Gryffindor!" it pronounced, and to thunderous applause she took her seat at one of the middle tables. _

_Sarah barely even paid attention as student after student was sorted, nervousness causing her to fiddle with her crisp new robes as she waited for her name to be called. Next thing she knew, following Gable, Reece, she was called to the stool. Before the hat was even fully on her head it called out a single word. "Gryffindor!"…_

_xXx_

"_Sarah!" Lily whined, pulling the covers off her sleeping friend._

"_What?" she asked groggily, pulling the pillow over her head._

"_It's our first day of class! GET UP!" Lily demanded, pushing Sarah from the bed with a loud _thunk.

"_Ouch!" Sarah complained, rubbing her bum as she stood and shook her hair out of the braid she had slept in before pulling on her robes._

"_Well if you had just gotten out of bed when I woke you up before my shower thirty minutes ago I wouldn't have been forced to such extremes!" Lily exclaimed, hands on hips as her fiery temper that seemed to accompany her fiery hair reared it's ugly head._

"_You're impossible," Sarah simply stated, packing her books into her bag before heading towards the door._

"_Am not, you are! It's the first day of classes our first year here and you can't even be bothered to get your lazy bum out of bed!" _

"_Oh come on Lils, you know I'm not a morning person," Sarah implored, running her fingers through her hair._

"_Ugh! I hate you so much sometimes!" the ginger stated, watching her friend as she groomed her hair. "Why is it that I, like most _normal _people, have to get up early to fix my hair into acceptability and you can just roll out of bed, unbraid your hair, and have perfect ringlets? So unfair!"_

"_Wow Lily, really? And besides, you are far from normal love," Sarah teased. This conversation had gotten completely off topic. Leave it to Lily…_

_xXx_

"_Lily!" Sarah exclaimed from her seat in the middle of the common room floor, surrounded by books with her best friend as said friend spaced out _again.

"_What?"_

"_Focus! Exams start tomorrow! We need to study!" Sarah exclaimed. This was extremely unlike Lily to be acting like this. _

"_I know, I'm just so worried about Sev, he's been acting so odd lately, so distant," the redhead mumbled, looking quizzically at the charms textbook before her but not really seeing it._

"_I know, Lils but we need to focus. OWLs are tomorrow! We can think about Severus later," Sarah stated logically. _

"_I know…"_

_xXx_

"_Lily what's wrong?" Sarah exclaimed, running to her friend who fell into her embrace, tears still streaming down her face as they sank down to the common room floor, Lily's sobs shaking them both._

"_Sev.. Se.. Severus…" she mumbled almost incoherently in-between tears, her face now as red as her hair as she trembled. Sarah ran her hands soothingly over her friend's back, rotating it in soft circles as she did her best to provide what little comfort she could._

"_What, Lils? What about Severus?" Sarah urged, holding her tight._

"_He… He called… -hick-… me a… a…" she sobbed._

"_A what?"_

"_A mudblood," she spat. "he.. He called me a mudblood…" she bawled, clenching her fists in Sarah's cloak._

_Sarah closed her eyes tight, balling her own fists in anger. _That bastard! _Right then what she wanted more than anything was to go pummel the bloody idiot to within an inch of his life but instead she continued to kneel on the floor doing her best to comfort her only remaining friend. They had both lost someone today, and with that tears began to silently fall from her own eyes…_

_xXx_

"_James Potter if you do not stop following me this instant I will hex you into next week you annoying prat!" Lily shouted in frustration as she and Sarah continued to walk down the hall, ignoring the raven-haired idiot and his cronies._

"_But Lily-bear I just want you to go out with me!" he begged, racing after them._

"_Call me Lily-bear one more time and see what happens to that oh so prized broom of yours," the ginger threatened, her eyes blazing. Sarah had to work very hard to conceal the laugh that was just begging to be released. James had been at this for months now and Sarah thought her friend should just accept the offer and get it over with. She caught the eyes of Sirius as he stood beside James and smirked, rolling her eyes. He smiled and did the same in return, both amused by their respective friend's antics._

"_But Lily, please? Just one teensy weensy little date? Please?" He continued to beg. Pulling doe eyes on the redheaded teen as he pulled his hands together in a pleading gesture. Lily desperately looked to Sarah for help._

"_Hey, don't look at me! Do you realize how many times you have pulled that same face on me? It's about time you got a taste of your own medicine." Lily pouted._

"_Please?" James begged._

"_No," lily exclaimed, stomping her foot slightly._

"_Pretty please?" there went the lip…_

"_I said no!" _

"_With a cherry on top?"_

"_Really, James? You truly are insufferable!" she stated, hands on hips._

"_Please?"_

"_No."_

"_Please?"_

"_No."_

"_Please?"_

"_YES!" she shouted finally giving up._

"_Plea- Wait, what?" he stated dumbly. She smirked and together they walked away to their next class leaving a dumbfounded James in the middle of the hall._

_xXx_

Hermione awoke with a jolt… or was it Sarah?


	3. Somnium Vates

**Here you go! Yet another chapter! This chapter will answer some of the questions my AMAZING reviewers sent me, but not all because then the story would pretty much be over and boring if you found all of my secrets out in the second chapter! Also, I saw the new Harry Potter movie (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I) and I was super impressed! It was amazing and except for a few minor details it stuck to the book really well so I definitely recommend y'all go see it! It was infinitely better than the 6th**** movie! Anyway… enough completely irrelevant chatter… hope you like the 2****nd**** Chapter!**

_Somnium Vates_

Sarah shot up abruptly as soon as her eyes shot open. Tears were flooding her cheeks as she tried her best to choke back the sobs that were escaping her throat in rugged gasps. She remembered _everything. _Ron's face as he died. Harry's disappearance. The twins. Mr. Weasley. Dumbledore. Everyone. They were all gone. Forever. Somehow Sarah instinctively knew this was no dream. She remembered everything from her life as Hermione as clearly as her own, and yet, now that she was awake, she no longer felt like she was _her. _She wasn't Hermione. The memories she held of her strange dream were distant, as if she had witnessed the events in third person. She was not Hermione, but still she felt her pain. She felt with every fiber of her being the pain that shot through Hermione's chest as Ron gave his life so she might live. She felt the sorrow and desperation of her loss of Harry. She felt the shattered kinship of Hermione's relationship with the Weasleys as they were killed off in the heat of battle, but the other memories were worse. It was not just Hermione's friends who had been killed.

Tears spilled down her cheeks as she remembered just why Harry was an orphan. Her best friend, Lily, had died before her son had even had the chance to get to know what a wonderful woman she was. James too, she was friends with James and the knowledge that he and Lily finally worked things out was just enough to make her smile for a few moments before the tears returned. She remembered the suffering Sirius had endured and his heart wrenching death. She remembered Remus, mangled and bloody on the battlefield. Everyone was gone. The tears continued to fall.

"Sarah?" Lily questioned sleepily, rubbing her bleary eyes as she sat up in bed. "Oh Sarah, what happened?" her friend inquired, running over to wrap her arms around her quaking friend in a comforting embrace. Sarah sobbed harder, unable to reply as tears clogged her voice and detained her breath.

"Shh, it's all right. Whatever it was, it was just a dream. It was just a dream, Sarah. Shh," Lily comforted, rubbing circles on Sarah's back as she rocked back and forth on her bed.

When Sarah's sobs finally subsided she untangled herself from the arms of the concerned ginger and wiped her eyes dry. She really didn't want to discuss her dream-that-was-not-a-dream with anyone, nonetheless Lily, who had died. She got the feeling this was information meant for her and her alone. What she wanted more than anything else at that moment was to go to the library. Surely they had a book on dreams such as hers somewhere.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Lily asked, concerned. She had never seen her friend react to anything, nonetheless a dream, in such a manner. Her eyes were bloodshot and red from tears and the trails where they had fallen still stained her cheeks. Her hair had come out of her typical braid, presumably from tossing and turning in her sleep.

"No Lily, I really, really don't. Can we just not talk about it?" Sarah begged, her eyes somehow different in Lily's eyes, as if she had seen enough sorrow to last her a lifetime. Lily decided to follow her wishes.

"Okay. Do you want to just go ahead and head down to breakfast? It's already nine so we won't be missing out on our weekend snooze too much," Lily joked, smiling as her small jibe worked and the corners of Sarah's mouth quirked up into a smile. "I'll go hop in the shower, I'll be out in a minute."

"Okay," Sarah replied, turning to her wardrobe and selecting a pair of bellbottoms and a vibrant purple blouse before pulling the top half of her hair up into a twist and letting the rest fall past her shoulders. Her hands were trembling slightly as she performed the simple spells to apply her usual light covering of make-up before walking over to her purse and making sure she had everything she would need for a day in Hogsmead. It was their first of the year and even with the memory of her strange dream looming over her head she couldn't help but feel excited. She simply loved that little wizarding villiage.

"LILY! HURRY UP!" she called out impatiently five minutes later when her friend still hadn't come out of the bathroom.

"Oh shove off Sarah! I'm almost done!" she called back, performing a quick drying spell on her hair as she exited the bathroom and smirked at Sarah's impatience.

"Well look who's all dolled up today, you know, if I didn't know you better, I would have thought you were actually excited about this date you have with Potter. Since when do you wear dresses?" Sarah teased, returning the smirk and cockily shutting the doors of her wardrobe with a quick flick of her wand.

"Why you! You better get your skinny little arse out that door right now before I decide to hex it off for that snide remark! At least I have a date!"

"Oh? You say that as if I don't…" the brunette teased, raising an eyebrow as she held the door open for her friend who's complexion was growing even more red by the minute.

"Sarah Jean Good! You got a date and didn't tell me? With whom?" Lily demanded, her eyes wide at the discovery of this new tid bit from the life of Sarah Jean Good. "We're best friends! We tell each other things like this!"

"Well you were so busy gushing over your date with James I never really got the chance. I had been planning to tell you when we ran into the marauders in the corridor yesterday," she replied nonchalantly, buffing her nails on her thigh.

"Well? Tell me now! Who is it?" the ginger demanded, frustrated by her friend's lack of exuberance.

"Oh, nobody special, just Sirius Black," she answered with a smirk, still buffing her nails carelessly.

"Sirius Black? But, but, that…" here she paused and thought back to all the times she had seen them whispering together in potions after they had completed their work, laughing in the halls after divination (a class Lily had never taken on sheer priciple), and swapping friendly greetings in the great hall, "that makes so much sense!"

"Yeah, it's been building for a while now, I'm really quite surrised it took me telling you for you to notice," the brunette teased, rolling her eyes and nudging her friend with her shoulder as they proceeded down the hall.

"But he's Sirius Black! He's so.. so.." Lily began before a mischievous voice behind them decided to help her out some.

"Handsome, charming, devious, fun," Sirius listed cockily as he came up behind them with James Remus and Peter in tow and slung his arm around Sarah's neck.

"Don't forget modest," Sarah teased, jabbing him in the side with her pointer finger in annoyance.

"See what I mean? I don't see what you see in him!" Lily replied exasperatedly, throwing her hands up in frustration. Sarah just laughed into Sirius's chest as he supported her the rest of the way to the great hall so she wouldn't collapse from hysteria.

"But Lily-bear that's no way to talk to my bestest friend," James pouted as he captured her hand.

"James Potter! Call me that one more time and I will personally see to it that you lose all capability to reproduce! Christ only knows it would do the world a favor to prevent whatever mutation arose in your jeans from passing on to another generation."

James was confused. He had hardly understood a single word she had said after "reprodice" and after one look at the mirth on Sarah's face and the red shade of Lily's he decided he probably didn't want to know.

Soon enough they were all situated in the great hall, surrounded by food and preparing to dig in. Quite litterally on the boys' parts. They stuffed their plates high with bacon, eggs, hash browns and toast with plenty of butter and jelly. Lily and Sarah thought they just might be sick as they watched James and Sirius in particular consume an ungodly amount of food.

"Where does it all go?" Lily asked Remus in amazement, he seemed the only one of the four who didn't appeaar as if he hadn't seen food in weeks.

"It's magic," the slightly scarred boy replied with a mischievous glint in his eyes as he smirked their way and continued to eat. They took one look at each other, rolled their eyes in exhasperation, and continued to _politely _butter their toast.

One hour and three plates later the boys were finally finished with breakfast and all six of them made their way out to the carrages to take them to Hogsmead. Sarah had a hard time looking Peter in the eye the whole time thanks to her "dream" (she was still convinced it was much more than a dream) and so she did her best to avoid having to talk to him or even acknowledge his presence. It wasn't easy.

"So Sarah, do you understand the muggle studies homework Prof. Burbage assigned Friday?" he asked when they were about halfway to the small wizarding villiage.

"Uh.. Um… yeah, it wasn't too bad," the small girl (at least in comparison to the four giant boy's and Lily's rather tall stature), replied, stumbling over her words slightly as she wished to be anywhere but there in that moment. She just could not shake the fact that she knew, deep down, that that dream had been true and he had really been able to so easily give up his friends. Just looking at him made her want to pull out her wand a say a spell she knew she would only live to regret and so instead she bit her toungue and put on her best "happy mask" as she proceeded to explain to him the purpose of a cinema.

"Hey, are you okay?" Sirius asked as they got out of the carriage, wrapping his arm around her waist as he whispered in her ear.

"Can we just get out of here?" she murmured, leaning her head back to whisper into his ear in kind. He nodded his head.

"Well Sarah and I are leaving, you guys have fun, I know I will!" he stated with a mischievous glint in his eye as he picked her up by the waist and threw her over his shoulder. By this time she had completely forgotten her dream as she found herself lost in the here and now.

"Sirius Orion Black! Put me down right now! You great brute, put me down!" she yelled before falling into laughter and squealing as he bagan to tickle her sides, ignoring the sharp kicks he was receiving in return. "SIRIUS!"

"Please do keep it up, I never realized how enjoyable it would be to have you scream my name!" he teased, still feverishly attacking her sides as her face went even more red (if that was possible) from embarrasment. Lily, James, Remus and Peter were in stitches as they witnessed the sight before them, all awkwardness forgotten. Next thing Sirius knew he was falling backwards, unable to move, and Sarah had sprung agilely from his back smiling at him as she twirled her wand between her fingers. Their small audience fell to the floor in laughter.

"Now now Sirius, that wasn't very nice," she taunted, motioning with her eyes for the others to leave before kneeling down over him. "You should never forget my abilities as which," she smirked. "I could leave you here all day and hang out with Remus and Peter and then you would be out a date."

With that she leant over slightly more until her face was mere milimeters from his. "But I'm not that mean, don't worry," she added with a wink, squirming a little bit on his petrified waist teasingly before winking again and releasing him from the spell attempting to get up in his moment of confusion but foiled as he immediately reached out to grab her, rolling them over in the fallen leaves of a nearby oak.

"Not so fast you saucy wench, what makes you think you can tease me and get away with it so easily," he demaned mischievously, she gulped slightly. _Shit. _

"But Sirius, I didn't do anthing wrong," she pleaded, pouting slightly as she looked up at him, her hazel eyes wide with fake innocence.

"Of course not, how could the beloved little Gryffindor angel _ever _do something wrong," he replied, rolling his eyes as he kept her pinned beneath him.

"Please get off me?" she asked, attempting begging as a new approach.

"Only on one condition," he replied, leaning in so that the whisper of his breath blew warmth across her chilled cheeks.

"Hmm, whats that?" she murmured, her eyes heavily lidded as if from sleep as she looked up at him.

"Kiss me."

She closed the almost nonexistent gap between their lips and shut her eyes, smiling into the chaste kiss that had been their first. Suddenly the scene around them changed as she drifted off, a small tear falling down her cheek as she remembered…

_She was helpless, completely helpless as she watched her best friend's godfather fall backwards into the veil; his last expression that of complete shock that he had been defeated. His clear blue eyes revealed his knowledge of his fate as he slipped away…_

She tried as hard as she could to shake the memory, this was supposed to be happy! She had been waiting for this for as long as she could remember! This was not a time to remember!

"_Sirius!" Harry cried, fighting desperately against Remus as he attempted to reach the man who had been the closest thing to a father he had ever known. Hermione was bawling into the arms of Ron who had come up just in time to catch her as she began to sink to her knees in sorrow…_

"Sirius," she bawled, grbbing him by the collar and pulling him close, trying to use him as an anchor to pull her away from the horrible memories of her dreams. Tears flooded down her face as the scene continued to play out right before her clenched eyes.

"_Sirius!" Harry screamed out again in agony, his voice hoarse and broken with tears… _

"Sarah! Sarah snap out of it!" Sirius demanded, worried as he pulled her trembling form into his lap, worry lacing his features as he rocked her back and forth. "Sarah I'm here, I'm okay, I'm right here," he murmured, kissing her hair and her cheek and rubbing her arms soothingly. "shh, I'm right here."

"Sirius," she cried, clutching desperately to the collar of his shirt as she buried her face in his chest. That was the last thing she said for a long time, instead she continued to cry softly into his shoulder as he rubbed her back and murmured soothingly into her hair as he rested his head atop hers.

"Sarah, what happened? What's wrong?" he asked when she had finally calmed down and was just sitting in his arms in the leaves, tear tracks staining her cheeks.

"Last night I," she paused, worried about how much she should tell him before deciding just how to continue. "I had a strange dream and.. And bad things happened… and I'm so scared," she mumbled into his chest, clenching her eyes tightly shut. "I really don't want to talk about it. Can we go to Hogsmead please? I really don't ant to think about it right now," she pleaded, hazel eyes meeting clear blue as she stared imploringly into his eyes, begging with the soft orbs for him to understand. He smiled.

"Of course, love. Whatever you want."

"Thank you," she whispered, reaching up on the tips of her toes to gently peck his lips before taking his hand and proceeding back towards the small villiage.

Two butterbeers, a pack of chocolate frogs, and three different quidditch shops later they found themselves entering a small bookshop, quite unwillingly on Sirius' part as he fought a losing battle with the pettite witch standing before him.

"Do we _have _to?" he whined for the twelve-thousandth time, looking around the dusty shop as if Slughorn was going to pop out from behind one of the shelves and assign him a seven page essay on the benefits of bowtruckle wings in medicinal potions brewing.

"Yes we _have _to," she replied with a smirk at his antics. He could be so ridiculous when he felt like it. "If _you _can drag _me _into not one but _three _quidditch shops then I can drag you into a bookstore for a few minutes. If you find it that bothersome the magazine stock is over there, I'm sure you can emmerse yourself in the wonderful world of quidditch for a few moments while I browse," she teased, looking at him pointedly until he finally caved and trudged his way over to the magazine section to brush up on the latest quidditch stats.

She walked around for a few minutes lazily scanning the shelves, aimlessly wandering from section to section when she saw a title that made her stop dead in her tracks. "_Somnium Vates; _Dream Seers._"_

**So there you have it! My first chapter to really begin the progression of the plot! I do hope it was satisfactory even though I'm sure it's not what any of you expected. Please review and let me know what you think! I love hearing from you! -A**


	4. Some Fates Must Stay the Same

**Hey guys! Sorry it's taken me so long to update! School gets a bit hectic this time of year for us high-schoolers in the states! Anyways it has come to my realization that my idea for where this story is heading could possibly necessitate a sequel, but that's not certain yet, just thought I'd let you know! Also I know I have a lot more readers out there than are reviewing so PLEASE I feed off your feedback so let me know what you think even if it's just a "nice job" or "Yay you finally updated!" I like to think of you guys as people instead of "story alerts" in my inbox!**

**Disclaimer: I own a nifty new car, but that's not exactly Harry Potter**

Some Fates Must Stay the Same

The cover stared up at her from it's place in her small hands. Every cell in her body zinged to attention. It drew her, called to her, and she couldn't tear her eyes away. She had no more than read the cover but she knew this was exactly what she was looking for. Discreetly she walked over to the counter and placed the book in her bag after purchasing it. She had just taken her fingers from the zipper when she felt two strong arms wrap around her waist from behind.

"Ready?" he breathed, the warmth of his breath spreading across her neck as he placed a small kiss on the smooth skin.

"Yes, it's high time we met the others for lunch," she said with a smile, leaning into him for a moment before pulling away and taking his hand as they walked to the three broomsticks. Hers was small in comparison to his, calloused by many years of wielding a beater's bat. She had always enjoyed the sensation of his warm, rough palms enveloping hers. She actually found it a bit odd that it had taken them this long to begin a relationship. For as long as she could remember they had been close like this. It had all started first year after a particularly nasty run in with a few of the Slytherine third years…

"_Are you going to cry?" Lucius teased, eyes filled with malice and sick humor as he bore down on her. "Scared, mudblood?" he taunted. He rose his wand, "You should be."_

_Her body froze in fright, it was only the second day of school and she had no clue how to even begin to defend herself from the older student. All the spells she had read about fled from her thoughts as her body was gripped with terror at the situation. Even if she had remembered them, she had not had the time to try them out at all yet. She had been far to busy acquainting herself with the school._

"_HEY! LEAVE HER ALONE!" Sirius had shouted, aiming his wand at the larger boy. "She has done you no wrong, Malfoy. Leave her be!"_

"_Now why would I want to do that? You don't scare me you filthy blood traitor! What would your mother say?" Lucius prodded, eyes aflame with malice._

"_To hell with my mother! Now you-" he didn't get the opportunity to finish his demand as their head of house, Professor McGonagall, had just arrived on the scene._

"_Mr. Black! Watch your language! Detention, my office, tomorrow night a seven sharp!" She bellowed, not allowing Lucius' snicker to persist for long as she rounded on him. He gulped in fright. "As for you Mr. Malfoy, I believe you're punishment is beyond me. Shall we see the headmaster? Follow me."_

"_Are you okay?" he asked as soon as they were gone. She nodded, the tears running silently down her cheeks giving her away._

"_Hey, don't listen to him. People like him mean nothing, you hear? Absolutely nothing. All he is is vermin and he knows it. I just wants to bring you down so that he won't have to be alone at the bottom. Pricks like him don't even deserve the time of day." Sirius comforted in his own way, rubbing her back softly._

"_Thanks," she smiled, wiping the tears from her cheeks as she turned to him. _

"_Don't mention it, any bloke worth his salt would have done the same."_

"_I'm Sarah, by the way," she murmured, leaning into the comfort of his hand on her back, exhausted from the encounter._

"_Sirius," He smiled. It was the most beautiful, genuine smile she had ever seen. Even though she didn't know it at the time it was that first time he smiled at her that she fell in love with him._

She smiled even more brightly as she came back from the memory. It seemed so odd to her that none of their friends had ever figured it out. She supposed they never really felt the need to broadcast their budding relationship to the world. Perhaps it was selfish of them, but neither one of them had wanted to give up the silent companionship they shared where nothing else mattered. Not quidditch or gossip or drama or pranks, just Sirius and Sarah, together and yet not. It wasn't until recently that their relationship had become so public and serious, but that felt right too. If she was being honest with herself any relationship with serious could never feel wrong. He had been her first kiss. She could still vividly remember that night so many years ago…

_It was the first snow of the year. Hogwarts glistened in the early morning, an owl hooted in the distance and Sarah was sitting un her favorite rock by the lake, a smile on her face. She didn't know why she had woken up so early on a Saturday, but she wouldn't change this moment for anything, especially not for a couple measly hours of sleep. It was her favorite time of year. She loved winter. She loved the clean purity that enveloped the world with each new snow fall. She loved the silence as animals lay dormant through the cold months. She loved the chill and the serenity. Nothing could compare to winter at Hogwarts. She was very surprised, however, when the soft crunching of snow disrupted her thoughts._

"_Hey," Sirius greeted with his trademark smile, his blue eyes holding the mischievous light that never really left them as he sat down beside her. "I thought I'd find you here."_

"_Yeah, I'm surprised your up though, it's only seven, shouldn't you still be hibernating with your partners in crime?" she teased, smiling brightly back. They hadn't really had time to talk much recently and she missed him. He put his arm around her shoulders and she snuggled into him for warmth._

"_Now why would I sleep when I could be out here on this beautiful morning with a surpassingly beautiful girl? Sleep is overrated," he murmured, resting his head on top of hers as they stared out at the lake. She smiled at the compliment. He had a way of making her feel as if she was floating on air with a simple sentence. She felt at home under his arm._

"_Hmmm," she murmured n reply, closing her eyes as she leant against him, enjoying his presence even more than the stunning morning. He ran one hand gently through her curls as the other lazily traced circles on her back. They had always been close, but this was the first time they had been quite so close as they were at that moment. Neither of them wanted it to end._

_They were like that for close to an hour sharing Sirius' cloak and each other's warmth when he suddenly leapt from the rock and got to his feet. Startled, she turned inquisitively to face him, regretful of the loss of warmth and proximity._

"_Come on, I want to show you something," he said in answer to her silent question, smiling brightly as he helped her up, wrapping his arm around her waist when she reached the ground._

"_Okay," she replied, still curious but willing to go along with it. He rewrapped his cloak around their shoulders and lead her down a path she had never really noticed before. Even more curious now, she snuggled in closer to his side and increased her pace to keep up with his long strides._

_Before she knew it they had reached their destination and Sirius was whispering in her ear. "Close your eyes," he murmured softly, she did as he said without protest. He moved his hands to her waist and gently guided her forward. She bit her lip in anticipation a few moments later when they stopped and impatiently awaited his call to open her eyes. When he finally did she gasped softly, her had going to cover her mouth as she looked out at the most stunning view of Hogwarts she had ever seen. They were on top of what looked to be a series of caves outside Hogsmead and spread out below them was the whole village covered in white as it's inhabitants slowly began to stir. Off in the distance Hogwarts stood blanketed in snow, windows giving off a slight yellow glow in the early morning light. The lake sprawled lazily out to the side ringed by mountains._

"_Oh Sirius, it's lovely," she replied. He didn't answer, merely holding her close as they took it in together. She looked up at him a few seconds later and was surprised by how close his face was to hers. Her eyes were immediately drawn to his lips, slightly chapped from the chill, before flitting up back to his blue eyes filled with warmth that she felt throughout her whole body as his lips lowered closer to hers and she closed the distance. _

_It was soft, sweet, tentative. Close-mouthed they stood there for a moment, connected at the lips before he slowly pulled away and gently stroked her cheek. There were no words said. None needed to be. Instead he took her hand in his and they slowly made their way back to Hogwarts before everyone else woke up and noticed them missing…_

And then there was the first time he had told her he loved her, just a week ago, when for as far as their friends were concerned they had started dating…

_It was just cold enough to warrant a sweater as Sarah wrapped herself more firmly into her cloak on top of the astronomy tower long after she should have been asleep. She couldn't bring herself to pull away from the stars and make the long trek back to Gryffindor tower however and so instead she remained, bundled up against the biting wind as her hazel eyes roamed the sky, counting shooting stars._

"_You know I'm starting to think you're an insomniac," a warm, teasing voice murmured behind her. She smiled, she had hoped he would find her. Somehow he always seemed to know where she was at times like these. She had her suspicions as to why too, but she decided not to spoil his fun._

"_It's hard to sleep when you know what your missing out on, she replied, gesturing out to the stars laid out before her. Her eyes still scanning the night sky. "It's so beautiful," she whispered, never moving from her spot at the ledge._

"_Yeah, it is," he murmured behind her, but as she turned in curiosity at the heaviness of emotion she detected in his voice she realized he hadn't even looked at the stars. He was staring straight at her, eyes filled with warmth and something else… something more._

"_I love you," he murmured, pulling her close and pressing his lips to hers firmly, softly, desperately as he pulled her as close to him as he could possibly manage. When he finally allowed her up for her she smiled brightly and looked into his stunningly blue eyes._

"_I love you too Sirius, so, so much," and she pulled him back down and gently placed her lips against his once more…_

She snuggled deeper into Sirius' side, smiling at the memories. She honestly couldn't imagine her life without him. He had been so important for so long. She loved him so much-

"Sarah?" he inquired, bringing her out of her thoughts.

"Yeah?"

"Where were you just then? You looked off," he replied curiously, pulling her closer as he wrapped the arm that had previously been holding her hand around her waist.

"Just thinking about you. Us." she replied simply, leaning her head against his shoulder. He nodded in understanding and held the door open for her a moment later when they reached The Three Broomsticks. James, Lily, Remus, and Peter were already there, sitting at their usual table in the far corner when they walked in, butter beers in hand as they tried their best to transfer the warmth from the mugs to their frozen hands.

"I'll go get us a drink," Sirius murmured, rubbing his hand over her lower back lightly as he removed it from her waist.

"Okay," she replied softly, smiling at him as he walked away before walking over to their friends. It was weird to have their friends together like this, but she liked it. She liked being able to be with everyone she loved at the same time, even if that meant sharing a table with worm tail. Even before the dream she had never liked him much. He always gave off a weird vibe.

"Well if it isn't the two lovebirds come to join us at last," James teased, mischievous smirk in place as he greeted the best friend of his long-time crush.

"Nice to see you too James," she replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes as she took one of the empty seats next to Lily. "You say that like your not completely smitten with my best friend over here."

"Yeah James, you really have no room to talk mate," Sirius added as he joined them at the table. "Here you go love, a nice steaming cup of butter beer just for you," he said jovially, looking proud of himself as he took the seat beside her. She couldn't help but laugh at his childish nature. It was just one of the many reasons she had fallen in love with him so easily, he was so easy going.

"Thanks," she replied, a thin layer of foam coating her lip from the froth. He laughed and wiped it off for her. "Oh shut up…" she mumbled, looking down with a blush.

The rest of the lunch was spent talking amicably about everything and nothing. Their two groups merged easily as Lily discussed the latest books with Remus and Sarah, Sirius, and James had a whole discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of being an unregistered animagus, the latter of the two remained oblivious to her knowledge of their full moon jaunts with their furry friend. Over all it was very comfortable and the topics remained relatively light until Sirius asked a question that caused tension to spring up like tigger on a sugar high.

"So what was that book you bought today?" he asked casually, completely oblivious to the position he had just put her in.

"Oh, nothing really, just a book on baby care I thought I could send to my sister in Whales, she's expecting you know," Sarah replied, playing it off as nothing and hoping nobody would notice. Remus stared at her a bit skeptically for a minute but seemed to shake himself out of it.

"Oh yeah, that's right, isn't she the one that married that Hufflepuff? What was his name…" James replied, scratching his chin as he tried to recall the name.

"Yeah, she met him when she came to visit Hogwarts for a couple weeks last year, I swear she simply wouldn't shut up about how lucky I was to be a witch and go to school with him for months until he finally popped the question and they moved in together after his graduation. She always has been a little obsessive though, as much as I love her," Sarah continued with a smile, happy they had bought the diversion.

"So she's expecting now? How far along is she?" Remus asked jovially, his curiosity peaked.

"Yeah, she just found out, she's only about six weeks in, they don't even know the gender yet," Lily replied, smiling with happiness for her friend.

"That's so cool, I bet your really excited to be an aunt," James added with a huge grin, it was no secret that he absolutely adored children.

"I am, I can't wait to see the little tyke, that baby is going to be so spoiled it's not even funny," she replied honestly, a warm smile on her face as Sirius pulled her into his side since they had now finished eating and were just talking.

"Well, I don't know about you guys but I have a lot of studying left to do, I think it's time I headed back," Lily said regretfully with a long sigh, she really didn't want her date with James to end but it was time to get back.

"Yeah, we'll go with you," James replied sadly, standing and offering her his cloak before walking outside with the rest of them in tow. They made their way to the carriages and from there to the school in relative silence. There was nothing really left to say and the silence was nice. Admittedly they were all a bit tired, but as soon as they arrived at the school Sirius took Sarah's hand and pulled her away from the group.

"I want to show you something," he said with a mischievous grin, peaking her interest as he guided her along the familiar hallways. When they reached the portrait of the dancing trolls she smiled in recognition at where they were but decided to let him have his fun and pretend like she didn't know of the room's existence. Besides, she only knew bout it from Hermione's memories anyway so she wasn't _technically _supposed to know it existed already anyway.

He paced back and forth in front of the blank space of wall in front of the portrait three times and as soon as he finished his last pace an old wooden door appeared, she pretended to be shocked. He smiled his signature I-know-something-funny-no-one-else-knows Sirius smile and his eyes glittered with satisfaction. He was certainly quite proud of himself in that moment.

"Welcome my lady, to the Room of Requirement. Right this way, if you will," he stated regally, opening the door and dramatically signaling for her to enter. She couldn't help but laugh at is antics.

Even though she knew of the room's capabilities she couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her lips. The ceiling had been enchanted similarly to that of the great hall but it only showed the stars, fading back the light of the sun until she could see the daytime stars just as well as she could see the others at night. The floor was a rich mahogany sprinkled with rose petals and there was a large plushy blue couch in front of a roaring fire set in a fireplace made of black marble. A rich Persian rug was cantered just in front of the fire place and candles floated about the entirety of the room.

"Oh Sirius, it's lovely," she stated, spinning in a slow circle to take it all in.

"This is our actual date, this is what I wanted for our first date, Sarah," he murmured, pulling her close in a warm embrace that she sighed into. "This is what you deserve, not some typical trip to Hogsmead.

"You know, if anyone else ever found out how much of a sap you truly are you would never live it down. It would completely ruin your bad boy reputation," she stated, giggling. This was her Sirius, this was the Sirius only she was privileged enough to know. He chuckled at her statement and mumbled something that sounded remarkably like "screw" and "bloody reputation" but she didn't have much time to put the two together before he captured her lips in a searing kiss and completely ended her thought process before leading her to the couch and handing her a glass of wine.

They spent the better part of the afternoon like that, sipping wine and gazing up at the stars on the rug in front of the warm fire as they simply continued to enjoy each other's presence. When dinner time came around they ate their, Sirius having already asked Binky (a house elf that was in love with him and had apparently followed him to Hogwarts after being fired from the black house) to bring them dinner. It wasn't until very late that they made their way back to Gryffindor tower and they were thankful everyone else was already asleep.

"Goodnight, he whispered softly in her ear before kissing her sweetly in front of the staircase that lead up to the girls dorms. She smiled up at him and returned the sentiment, kissing him lightly on the cheek before tiptoeing up to bed. It wasn't until she was safely back in the girl's dormitory that she remembered the book. Using her wand as a flashlight within the shield of her curtains she pulled it out of her bag.

_Somnium Vates_: Dream Seer

Wearily she opened the cover and began to read the first page:

_In this world there are many strange things that even magic cannot explain. It is one of these many unexplainable events that this book will explore. That of the little known case of _Somnium Vates _or Dream Seers. There have been very few recorded incidences of the occurrence of _Somnium Vates _which has played a major role in why it is so little known and researched. It is believed that the occurrence of _Somnium Vates _is caused when in the event of a person's death they send out the memories of their life to the one person their should believes can help them best. It is unknown how exactly the soul can detect the proper recipient, though it has been concluded the person need not have ever known the owner of said memories. Through what little examples are available for study we have included that these are, indeed, memories of another time and not just dreams, but the fact that they are presented in the form of a dream makes it even more difficult to find cases where it has occurred…_

She stopped reading there. She had her answer. It hadn't just been a dream. This Hermione person was real. Her memories were real, and that meant-

"No," she mumbled desperately into her hands as tears began to pull in her hazel eyes before she fiercely wiped them away. "It won't happen, I won't let it!" she murmured determinedly, pounding her pillow with a clenched fist, but as she thought back on all of Hermione's memories she came to a realization she wished she had never had to face. There are some fates that must stay the same… Without that prophecy Voldemort might never be defeated, but she couldn't just let her friends Die. She couldn't just let _Sirius _die. And in that moment she first began to plan a scheme that would completely alter the course of history. She would do whatever was necessary to protect those she loved. She would _not _let Hermione's reality come to be!

**Well there you have it! I hope you liked it and I really hope some more of you review! And if you can't think of anything to review about maybe you could answer this question for me…. Can you tell I'm American by the way I write? And if so, how?**

**Well that's all for now! Until next time! -A**


	5. It's Lily

**A/N: I'm back! (hopefully to stay)! I really hope you guys haven't given up on me yet because I have every intention of finishing this story!**

**Disclaimer: Not mine!**

It's Lily

The next morning Sarah awoke with the dawn. What little sleep she had achieved had been fitful and after waking up for what had to have been the tenth time she finally gave up and made her way into the common room book in hand, not even bothering to change out of her pajamas. Who would be up at this hour anyway? She had barely been there a minute when Sirius walked down the stairs, a concerned look in his tired eyes as he took in her expression.

"What's wrong?"

She smiled, "do you have some kind Sarah radar or something?"

"Radar?" he asked, clearly confused. She shook her head.

"Never mind," he smiled and pulled her onto his lap as he sat next to her on the couch. He didn't press like she had originally feared; instead he held her close and rubbed small circles on her shoulder as they stared into the fire. It was moments like this that made her fall in love with him even more.

"Thank you," she whispered softly into his chest.

"For what?" he asked, confused.

"For everything: for not pressing, for sitting with me," she turned in his lap and planted a chaste kiss on his lips. "For loving me." He smiled and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. She smiled into his lips.

"Well good morning to you too," Lily said in an amused voice as she descended the stairs. Sarah groaned.

"Go away," she mumbled into Sirius' lips.

"Ummm…, no. Go get dressed couch potato we have studying to do," Lily replied in a tone that Sarah felt her ears should _not _be assaulted with so early in the morning.

"Excuse me? Who woke up first this morning?" Sarah exclaimed in exasperation to a chorus of sniggers from Sirius.

"Yes well getting up to go downstairs and snog your boyfriend doesn't count," she replied haughtily, throwing up her chin in agitation. Sirius' sniggers turned into guffaws and Sarah whacked him over the head with a pillow from the couch.

"Hey!" he cried indignantly. She raised an eyebrow at him before strolling across the room and up the stairs. She ignored him and closed the door to her room a little harder than was necessary before unbraiding her hair and pulling on a black leather mini skirt and a flowy green top lined with blue embroidery. Dressing nice had always been a comfort, though she never really knew why. With a few flicks of her wand her make-up was on and she was on her way back down the stairs.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, Sirius had gone upstairs to rouse the guys but they hadn't made it back down in time to appease Lily so it was just her and Sarah hurriedly eating their toast before making their way to the library.

"So you and Sirius seem pretty serious," Lily teased, nudging Sarah's shoulder on their way down the hall. Sarah smiled but didn't answer, her cheeks flushing slightly in embarrassment. It felt strange to have their relationship out in the open like this. She wasn't used to the public scrutiny.

The rest of their journey was made in silence and when they reached the library they split up momentarily in pursuit of material, each meeting back up at their usual table buried under a stack of books. With Christmas holidays come and gone the teachers were really starting to lay the homework on thick for their NEWT students. The library was filled with seventh year students surrounded by precarious towers of books and scrolls. Sarah scowled.

"Why did I take potions again? This is ridiculous! I want to be a dragon keeper, not a potions master! I can't believe this is now the fifth potions essay since we got back! Is Slughorn insane?" the librarian looked at her accusingly but Sarah couldn't seem to find an apologetic smile within her current capabilities, instead she sent the frazzled old woman a scowl and was tempted to stick out her tongue.

"Sarah! This is a library, calm down! Now what seems to be the problem?" Lily asked, exasperated. Her eyes were slightly bloodshot from staring at the runes she was required to translate in front of her and her frustration was definitely not helping her already short temper.

"It's this flaming potions essay! I have been researching the properties of billywig wings for hours and I still can't seem to find anything about their use in the Draught of Dreams!"

"Calm down! That's easy! Here," she said, tossing a leather brown book Sarah's way. It's in my notes."

"Thanks," the brunette returned gratefully. She was just finishing up her essay when their silence was once more disrupted, this time by the dubious duo James and Sirius.

"Guess who?" Sirius whispered into Sarah's ear, his hands covering her eyes.

"Hmm… the Easter Bunny?" she teased, pulling his hands away and wrapping them around her shoulders.

"Ha-ha, very funny but I am most certainly _not _a bunny," he replied with a smile, kissing her brow.

"Wow Sirius, you're a right poet mate," James taunted, nudging Sirius' shoulder.

"Boys! Honestly! This is a library!"

Needless to say the fed up librarian kicked them out.

"I can't believe you guys! Do you not care about your newts at all? You know if you flunk out you most definitely _won't _be an auror right?"

"But Lily-bear, we don't need to study! We're geniuses!" James declared, picking her up and slinging her over his shoulder.

"And it was this genius that told us the two of you need a break," Sirius added, slinging an arm over Sarah's shoulder. Sarah laughed. Lily wasn't so amused.

"JAMES!" the temperamental redhead exclaimed, pounding her fists against his back.

"Really Lily, you're only encouraging him. Apparently, he likes it rough," Sirius said with a wink and a smirk. Sarah buried her face in his shirt to muffle her laughter.

"UGH! I AM GOING TO KILL YOU PEOPLE! THIS IS SO UNFAIR! IF I COULD REACH MY WAND RIGHT NOW I WOULD-"

"Now now lily-bear, that's no way to speak to your boyfriend and his best mate, is it?" James teased slapping her arse and shooting a returning wink at Sirius.

"Why does this not surprise me?" Remus exclaimed as he rounded the corner and spotted his obnoxious friends. "I thought you were going to the library?"

"We did!" Sirius protested haughtily, placing the hand that wasn't around my waist on his hip. "Unfortunately we were forced to leave."

"Seriously? You guys got kicked out _again_? That's the fourth time this week!"

"What? It's not our fault that old bat has no sense of humor. She should get some sunshine once in a while; lighten up a bit and so on. She's become as stuffy as her books!" James proclaimed, coming to Sirius' aid. Sarah shook her head even as Lily vehemently protested.

"THOSE BOOKS ARE NOT STUFFY YOU PILLOCK! PUT ME DOWN!"

"My my Lily, language! And you say I'm bad," James admonished. Remus shook his head in defeat.

"Where are we going anyway?" Sarah asked after a moment's silence.

"Why, to lunch of course!" Sirius replied grandly. And so it was that the rambunctious gaggle of seventh years made their way to the Great Hall for lunch. At least she had finished her essay.

xXx

The sun had long set and the first years were long since in bed by the time Sarah finally had time to mull over her new book. Thoughts of how to save her friends without jeopardizing the prophecy inundated her tired mind as she stared blankly into the fire. She couldn't stand by and watch James and Lily die, but how else would harry receive the protection of his mother? But then… technically there was no prophecy yet right? Maybe-

"Sarah," Sirius whined, breaking her out of her thoughts.

"Hmm," she replied distantly as she regained awareness of her surroundings.

"You spaced out on me again. What's wrong love? Something's eating you and it's killing me to see you like this. Let me help," he pleaded, pulling her into his chest and stroking her hair.

"I can't," she whispered regretfully, tears filling her eyes. Hermione's memories had come to _her; _the girl's soul had sought out _her, _not Sirius. She had to figure this out on her own. Or at least she would for now. If her plan was to work she was going to need the help of her friends soon enough.

"I just want to help you," he murmured helplessly into her hair. She snuggled closer into his chest, breathing him in. She loved how Sirius smelled: like broom wax and cedar and wood smoke. She drew comfort from his embrace and before she knew it she had slipped into a much deeper sleep than she had been able to achieve the night before…

The next thing Sarah was aware of was a soft pressure on her lips pulling her out of a most pleasant dream… wait- lips? Where was she? Sirius deepened the kiss and suddenly she could care less where the hell she was because all she could thing about was this was a _much _better wake-up call than the ones Lily usually provided (namely a pillow to the face).

"Good morning," he murmured, smiling into the kiss.

"Hmm… good morning," she replied drearily. "Where are we?"

"The common room, I couldn't very well go up the girl's staircase so we're still on the couch," she laughed.

"Oops, I guess I best get up then before we frighten the first years. I'll see you at breakfast," and with that she was gone, up the stairs and into her dorm where she proceeded shower quickly since she hadn't had time for a bath the night before and change into her school robes. Lily didn't ask and for that she was grateful.

Breakfast was rather rushed (no one, it seems, could be timely on a Monday) and all too soon they found themselves waiting for Slughorn in the potion's lab while the Marauders goofed off at the tables behind them. Lily rolled her eyes.

"Honestly? Will they ever grow up?"

"Probably not," Sarah answered with a smile, "but you know you love it."

Lily's only answer was to shake her head ruefully because at that precise moment Slughorn decided to make an appearance and they were forced to listen to a lecture on Bowtruckle eyes and their medicinal properties. Sarah ended up just passing notes to Sirius while Lily avidly took notes of her own. Sarah was momentarily reminded of Hermione before she shook her head and forced her thoughts away from so dreary a subject. That could wait for now, potions was bad enough as it was.

When they were finally released from the dungeons Sarah, Sirius, and Remus made their way to Care of Magical Creatures while Lily, James, and Peter went to Ancient Runes. It was only then that another of Hermione's memories truly began to take hold. She had known Remus was a werewolf ever since her dream, but the reality of that hadn't really hit her until just then. She was tempted to be afraid of him at first but then the more suicidal part of her nature (the part that had led her to decide to work with dragons) took hold and she felt nothing but curiosity and wonder. One of her friends was a werewolf; how cool was that! That thought alone was enough to put an extra spring in her step as they made their way to class. Today was shaping up to be a good day, especially for a Monday.

After Care of Magical Creatures Sarah was the only one with an off period while everyone else was in Muggle Studies. Why exactly Lily insisted on taking that class when they had known more about muggles at the age of four than any of these wizards and witches would know by the time they took their NEWT was beyond her, but she no longer questioned her friend's eccentrics.

It was thus she found herself wandering the castle grounds huddled into her cloak to fight off the winter chill and wrapped in thermal charms to ward off what was left when she saw someone who gave her pause. There, nose buried in a book, Severus was sitting beside the frozen lake. Hermione's memories of the man flooded her thoughts even as her own memories of their childhood together inundated her mind. She carefully picked her way through the slush until she stood right behind him.

"Hey," she said, startling him to awareness as he shot up off the boulder he had been perched upon. "I'm sorry."

"What?" came his rather baffled reply. She had to force herself not to chuckle at his expression; it was just too funny.

"I said I'm sorry. I know you didn't mean it, Sev. It just hurt. I was just so angry, but I'm sorry," she replied forlornly, staring at her toes. "I know you probably won't forgive me but I needed to let you know," she added in a mumble, still refusing to look him in the eyes as she turned to leave. His hand on her arm stopped her.

"Hey," he stated soothingly, pulling up her chin so she was facing him. "I've never been mad at you Sarah, how could I be? I said a horrible thing, I just can't believe you've forgiven me for it: I wouldn't have forgiven me for it. What brought all this on?" he continued, brushing her hair out of her face and awkwardly shifting his feet in the icy slush beneath them.

"I need your help, Sev," she replied beseechingly, her eyes welling with tears as she searched his for the truth. "But I need to be sure of something first."

"Of course, anything! What do you need to know? What's happened?" he asked, concerned.

"You're not one of… _them _are you?" she asked, her eyes slightly fearful as she implored this of her long time friend. He couldn't be. Not yet. She couldn't be too late!

He slowly raised the sleeve of his left arm and the tension in the air was going to smother her until she finally let out a long breath as she saw the pale, unblemished flesh of his forearm. "Now what seems to be the problem," he asked, the concern still showing in his eyes.

"I- I need your help… it's Lily… ," she told him everything.

**Well, there you have it! Let me know what you think!**

**-A**


End file.
